Discussion

Restaurant Week morphs into Dine Out Boston

Short version: the old one-price-fits-all special deal of Restaurant Week ($38 for a three-course dinner from a limited menu) has lost its luster: fancy places had to dumb it down too much; it didn't seem like much of a deal at more modest places, especially in light of the e-coupon boom (Groupon et. al.).

Solution? Rebrand it and let restaurants choose from a wider range of bargain prices: dinner at $28, $33, or $38, lunch at $15, $20, or $25, no requirements for the number of courses.

I've been indifferent leaning towards hostile to RW for a while. I wonder if this new approach can rescue it from its recent decline.